In a news-rich month in U.S.-Japan relations, Mary M. McCarthy, professor of politics and international relations, was called on to provide her expertise on the BBC program The Context, through authorship of an article in The Conversation, and in a quote for the Washington Post. For the former two, she analyzed Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida’s April state visit to the US. In the last, she commented on President Joe Biden’s subsequent (and unfortunate) comment about a “xenophobic” Japan at a campaign event on May 1.

After an extensive self-study process led by Dr. Bengu Erguner-Tekinalp followed by a site visit team review and CACREP Board review the Counselor Education program was awarded accreditation through 2032. The Counselor Education program satisfactorily met all of the applicable standards for all three of the programs and was awarded the maximum eight year accreditation.

— Matt Bruinekool, School of Education

The Principal Global Citizenship Award was presented during the 2024 Global Citizen Forum. The award recognizes Drake faculty or staff who have made outstanding contributions to global engagement and internationalization of the campus and curriculum.

The 2023 recipient of the Principal Global Citizenship Award is Professor Susan Pritchett, director of clinical and experiential education at the Law School.

Professor Pritchett arrived at Drake University in 2018, and from the beginning she has contributed to a multitude of programs at Drake that have shaped the global mindset of students and built their intercultural capacity. She is a teacher, a mentor, and an advocate. Her work is centered on international human rights in action and creating experiences for her students that will not only be transformative for them, but that have tremendous community impact as well.

When Professor Pritchett arrived here, Drake Law did not have any kind of immigration clinic or services and no faculty expertise in the area. In this absence, Prof. Pritchett pioneered opportunities for Drake law students to gain meaningful global experiences. In 2019, she co-created an Applied Immigration Law Course that is still being offered to this day. This course traces the history of the Burmese conflict, allowing student to more deeply understand war and ethnic violence that perpetuates refugee flows. She invites members of the local Burmese community to class to share their experiences fleeing persecution in Burma and starting over in the US through refugee resettlement programs. The capstone experience involves partnering with a local NGO that serves Burmese refugees. As an outcome of that capstone, Drake law students have assisted 45 of the non-profit’s clients in applying for immigration benefits including green cards and citizenship.

In 2020, Professor Pritchett worked to secure a half a million dollar grant to launch Drake’s Refugee Clinic. This Clinic now provides 2^nd and 3^rd year law students the opportunity to represent non-citizens for asylum and other forms of humanitarian relief. The clinic and Prof. Pritchett’s work has provided meaningful experiences for nearly 50 law students and served over 60 clients, some of whom have been Drake international students and employees. Because of the tremendous impact the clinic has had, it was recently awarded a $1M grant by the Iowa Bureau of Refugee Services to provide representation and legal service to the nearly 1K Afghan refugees who live in Iowa.

Her work and passion go beyond the classroom and the clinic. Professor Pritchett has created volunteer experiences for students to work with green car holders to apply for naturalization. As the director of our externship program, she trains all students taking internships for credit in multicultural lawyering. She is also currently helping explore a collaboration with Drake’s partner university in Uganda, Makerere University Business School, to train faculty in experiential pedagogy and to help them develop a Business Clinic as part of their curriculum.

In the words of her nominator: “Talking about global human rights in the classroom is one thing. But when a student is sitting across from someone who has escaped persecution in their country and is desperately trying not to be sent back, they will never forget it and their perspective is forever altered. Those transformative experiences happen every day in our clinic and in other settings because Suzie Pritchett has created them. She believes so strongly both in the power of this type of education and in the public service we provide to those in need, who truly have no other place to turn. She is the quintessential global citizen and is helping to create dozens more of them every year.”

— Kaiya Kielb Young, Senior, Arts & Sciences

Kieran Williams, associate professor and co-chair of the Department of Political Science, has co-edited a collection of essays on the Czech writer-statesman Václav Havel. Each chapter focuses on a keyword closely associated with Havel’s thought – such as truth, power, responsibility – and what it tells us about the enduring meaning of his work and life in our time. Contributors were recruited by Williams and his co-editor, David Danaher (University of Wisconsin-Madison) from a range of disciplines and from around the world; Williams himself wrote two of the chapters. Williams’s 2016 biography of Havel recently appeared in a Turkish translation.

Please welcome us in congratulating Drake senior, Tyler Bartolome, for being announced as a George J. Mitchell Scholar, Class of 2025.

Overseen by the U.S.-Ireland Alliance, the Mitchell Scholarship has become one of the country’s most prestigious postgraduate awards. This year, about 350 applicants competed for the 12 scholarships, which cover educational expenses for a year of graduate study—including all tuition, room and board and a monthly stipend to cover living expenses at one of several participating universities in Ireland and Northern Ireland. Tyler is planning to study Biotechnology at University College Cork.

Tyler’s Accomplishments

Originally from Lincoln, Neb., Tyler is currently a Drake senior and an impressive quadruple major studying Biochemistry, Cell & Molecular Biology; Mathematics; Biology; and Chemistry. He is interested in using biotechnology research and international public policy to address climate change, and he won a highly competitive Barry Goldwater Scholarship for his research and academic achievements.

Tyler also led Drake University’s Semi-Passive Algae Rooted Carbon Caption (SPARCC) team to compete in the international OpenAir Carbon Removal Challenge, where they were the sole U.S. team in the finals. He conducted successful biotechnology research as an undergraduate at the University Nebraska-Lincoln, Drake University, and Johns Hopkins University. As the first two-term President of the Drake Chapter of Beta Beta Beta, an honor society for the biological sciences, Tyler and his team doubled the size and funding of the organization.

Tyler is also President and Founder of The Oral Record Institute, a 501(c)3 non-profit organization that collects and curates “oral histories” of individuals who have experienced military conflict, to better understand the effect that major historical events have on individuals. In his free time, he trains for triathlons, studies Arabic, and plays the mandolin.

To learn more about the George J. Mitchell class of 2025 here.

Professor of Biology Thomas Rosburg was among 16 of Iowa’s premiere scientists featured in the recently published book “Tending Iowa’s Land: Pathways to a Sustainable Future.” Tending Iowa’s Land, which was edited by Cornelia Mutel and published by the University of Iowa Press, was awarded first place for non-fiction nature by the Midwest Independent Publishers Association for 2023. The book is organized around four sections that speak to the environmental challenges we face in the degradation of soil health, the deterioration of water quality,  global climate change, and the loss of biodiversity. Professor Rosburg’s contribution was a chapter entitled “Iowa’s Rich Biodiversity Legacy: A Vision for the Future”.  Learn more about the book.

Brandi Miller, assistant director of new student programs in the Office of Financial Aid, has earned the FAAC designation from the National Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators’ accredited Certified Financial Aid Administrator (CFAA) Program.

Brandi joins the ranks of an elite group of almost 500 other financial aid professionals from across the country who earned the FAAC designation after successfully demonstrating industry-related experience, passing a comprehensive knowledge exam, and affirming commitment to the standards for ethical behavior that have long been a hallmark of the financial aid profession.

The FAAC designation indicates that Brandi possesses the foundational knowledge and skills to effectively administer Title IV federal student aid programs at colleges and universities across the country as a financial aid professional. It is also evident of Brandi’s hard work and commitment to Drake and the financial aid industry.

Please join me in congratulating Brandi on this major accomplishment.

— Adam Voigts, Chief Financial Officer 

Thomas Rosburg, professor of biology, was one of six Iowans recently honored as an Iowa Nature Champion at the Iowa Nature Summit, held at Drake University Nov. 16 and 17. The award, which was given for the first time at the Summit, recognizes individuals for their lifetime contribution to protecting nature, advocating for nature and educating others about nature.

Professor Rosburg has taught courses in ecology, botany, statistics, Iowa natural history, and nature photography for 27 years. Students in his courses learn about nature by being in nature on field trips to many places in Iowa and nearby states. He has been awarded over $1.9 million for studies in plant ecology. His work has resulted in 150 scientific papers and reports, 220 scientific presentations, and contributed material to 7 books. Professor Rosburg’s passion and knowledge has made him a popular advocate for nature. He has made over 425 public presentations to Iowans of all ages all across the state.

Professor Rosburg established the Drake Prairie Rescue and Restoration Program in 2004. Since then, more than 300 students have contributed 3,450 hours to prairie and savanna restoration on 66 sites in 22 counties for 55 landowners. Professor Rosburg has donated nearly 2,000 hours to Drake Prairie Rescue.

“Much of what I do every day can be regarded as education, whether it’s in a classroom, leading a field trip, writing a report or paper, making a presentation, consulting with a client, mentoring a student in research, or taking students on a camping and prairie rescue adventure. Therein lies both my proudest work and my hope for the future. It’s the legacy of knowledge bound by love and respect for nature. Hopefully anyone who spends time with me will likewise be infected with the utmost awe and reverence for nature as well as the moral duty to defend it.”

Drake University Law School has been named a Best Value Law School by preLaw Magazine for the 2023–2024 academic year.

The Best Value rankings spotlight law schools whose graduates excel on the bar exam and secure employment in the legal field without substantial financial burden. preLaw Magazine assessed all 197 ABA-accredited law schools in the country based on cost and graduate outcomes. This year, Drake Law School is positioned as the 9th Best Value private law school in the nation.

The Best Value rankings heavily weigh two critical indicators of academic achievement and professional preparedness — bar passage rate and graduate employment rate — as well as overall cost. The employment rate for the Drake Law Class of 2022 in JD or JD-preferred positions was 92%. In addition, an impressive 95% of Drake graduates passed the July 2023 Iowa bar exam on their first attempt, a testament to Drake’s dedication to equipping its students for immediate practice readiness upon graduation.

Support in the form of scholarships plays a big role in helping students manage expenses. In recent years, Drake Law School has prioritized efforts to help reduce student debt. This year, 85% of all students receive support ranging from partial to full tuition scholarships.

“Strong alumni support and careful stewardship of resources have allowed us to offer very high-quality legal education at a reasonable cost,” said Dean Jerry Anderson. “We believe that this top-10 ranking accurately reflects the powerful lifetime earnings benefit of a Drake Law degree.”

Read the complete list of Best Value law schools.

— Taylor Johnson, Law School

Two Drake students who are members of the Phi Chapter of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc. were selected for their National Leadership Delta Program.  This is a competitive program that is offered to collegiate members across seven regions. The women submitted applications, letters of recommendation and participated in an interview process and were selected as two of the 38 women in this year’s cohort.

The Leadership DELTA (Defining Emerging Leadership Through Advocacy) program is an eight-month leadership development program for collegiate members of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority Inc. focused on personal, professional and leadership development, self-care; and networking.

Please help us congratulate Trinity Harris and Jade Sklar!

— Liz Cadwell, Director, Fraternity and Sorority Life